I am enjoying a (mini) Week of Prayer on the campus of Thunderbird Adventist Academy every morning in their church. The speaker is from Texas, where he is director of recruitment for Southwestern Adventist University, in Keene. Texas. He is an incredibly dynamic and powerful speaker with a vivid imagination and a creative flavor that makes his narratives come alive. Add to that a terrific sense of timing and humor and you have a recipe that will captivate most young minds (and not so young ones). As I glance around the church I see most students engaged in his homily.
The beauty is the way he weaves a story, bit by bit, with unexpected twists and turns, sprinkled with a personal flavor of his own. Of course, this would only provide an interesting story and some needed entertainment, if not for the teachable moments on which great speakers capitalize. The preacher has created those moments and has taken advantage of those rare and tiny cracks when a young person tentatively slides their soul’s window open just an inch as they are captivated by a story that resonates with a personal experience or has simply disarmed them for a moment. It is at that moment that God works and the seed of the gospel is planted. It’s a God thing—from start to finish!
It is amazing to see God work through different personalities and gifts. If I listen merely as another person who does public speaking I would be tempted to hang it up and find some other pursuit. I do not have the flair, the vocal prowess, the diction, the homiletical skills, and the list goes on. But I am not another public speaker; I am a vessel for God to do what He does—from start to finish! The power is not in the speaker—it’s in the Word! I’d like to think in moments like this that I stand shoulder to shoulder with Balaam’s donkey—both living proof that God can communicate in surprising ways and get the point across. I can live with that. Back to work.
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